


A Swan’s Best Friend is Loneliness

by Azeran



Series: Camp Camp [2]
Category: Camp Camp (Web Series)
Genre: Bodily Harm, Gen, Implied Gwenvid - Freeform, Mentions of Violence, Non-Consensual Drug Use, Threats of Violence, platonic gwenvid
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-09
Updated: 2019-10-09
Packaged: 2020-11-28 06:47:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,335
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20962232
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Azeran/pseuds/Azeran
Summary: Gwen shouldn’t have gone to the Halloween party. And she should never trust mysterious voices that linger in the shadows.





	A Swan’s Best Friend is Loneliness

**Author's Note:**

> Who likes Gweniel?? It’s me. The answer is me. 
> 
> Happy early Halloween, all you lovely Camp Camp fans!

The party was in full swing around her, music thrumming through the floor in heavy beats, the air ripe with the smell of sweat and artificial sugar. Pushing through the costumed throng, Gwen grit her teeth and shouldered her way past a couple who looked nearly too drunk to function. She _ hated _parties. Especially Halloween parties. People just used it as an excuse to get extra wasted and dress extra slutty. Something she wasn’t against on principle, but there were so many people crammed in around her, and her anxiety was scratching at her rib cage, making her want to wheeze. 

Fuck. Why did she come here? Oh, right. _ David. _Checking in via text, and with a brand new number because the idiot lost phones like nobody’s business, he’d practically begged her to show up. Said they hardly got to see each other since summer ended, and wouldn’t she please come? It wouldn’t be any fun without her! 

Tch. Like it was _ her _fault they hadn’t hung out? Gwen had sent him multiple texts and emails throughout the last few months! She’d tried to keep in touch, be a good friend! And what did she get for it? Fucking NADA. But all of a sudden David was oh so desperate to spend time with her? He was so lucky she missed him. Next time she was definitely saying no, virtual puppy dog eyes be damned! Gwen could be tucked away in her apartment with a bowl of popcorn and a scary movie marathon right now, not slathered in makeup and bedecked in enough white feathers to make Odette swoon with envy. 

The real killer though? David wasn’t even here! All she had to show for all her hard work was a stupid text. 

_ Meet me at the courthouse at 8 o’clock! I’ll be waiting :) _

Well, here she was! Past eight, and no David in sight. Ugh. Gwen scowled, stuffing her phone back into her pocket. Who threw a party at a courthouse anyway? “This is a complete waste of time,” she muttered to herself, ducking out of the room just in time to avoid another drunk couple smashing into her. “Watch it!! Assholes.”

Checking her costume for any spills or tears, Gwen hurried down the hall, her slippers thudding softly against the old tile. She needed fresh air. The hot, sticky atmosphere was making her head throb. Or maybe it was just good, old fashioned agoraphobia. Either way, she was beyond done with people tonight. 

Gwen turned the corner, waiting for her eyes to adjust to the sudden light change. This hall was dark, nearly black as night, save for the burning red of an exit sign several feet away. Fucking freedom. The skirts of her costume swished around her calves as she rushed towards the door, creeping shadows gnawing at the floaty fabric. It was probably her anxiety fucking with her, but Gwen imagined eyes in the inky blackness, watching her every move. 

_ Gwen…….. _

Her fingertips brushed the door handle, freezing against the cool metal. Was that—no. No way. She was hearing things. Yup. She was all wound up from dealing with people, and now her stressed out mind was imagining things that weren’t there! Totally explained it. But then Gwen heard it again, her name whispered in the darkness. 

Couldn’t blame that on her paranoia. How about the Halloween spirit?

_ Gwen. Gwennnn…… _

“Who..” Gwen swallowed, praying her voice came out stronger than she felt. Because she felt pretty damn weak at the knees right now. “Who’s there?” 

Muffled laughter came from the shadows. _ “Such a silly question. I’m the one who invited you here Gwen!” _

All at once a rushed breath left her lungs, Gwen’s heartbeat slowing back down to a sluggish crawl. Oh. Ok. Not a ghost or demon then. Just an idiot redhead. “Great. Do me a favor and don’t bother next time! Do you have any idea how awful it is in there? There’s barely room to breathe! I nearly punched a guy for grabbing my ass! And that was all within the span of two minutes!!” Huffing, Gwen peered into the darkness, looking for any sign of the best friend she was totally ostracizing for the next few weeks. “Where are you?” 

_ “Right in front of you. Can’t you see me?” _

“Uh, no. I can’t see anything genius. That’s why I asked where you _ are. _” Gwen fumbled about, touching the wall in search of a light switch. Nada. Lucky her. “Look, follow me outside or something. It’s too dark in here.” And it was giving her the creeps. There was something majorly off about all this. 

_ “Wait. Before you go, I have something to show you!” _From the shadows sprouted spindly white fingers, and they quickly curled around her wrist, pulling Gwen away from the door. She couldn’t explain it, but a foreboding sensation unfurled in her gut, as cold as the fingers pressed against her skin. 

“Where are we going?? David?” 

That cold touch led her down the hall, not that they returned to the party. They darted past the cracked doorway, the loud music, journeying further into the dark courthouse. _ “I told you Gwen, it’s a surprise!” _

“But-!” Before she had a chance to speak, think, _ act, _she was yanked up a shrouded staircase and through another long hall, past so many doors she could barely keep count. Who knew the Sleepy Peak courthouse was this big? 

They passed by a cracked window, the shutters left open. The flimsiest patches of moonlight faded in through the old glass and illuminated their path, and for a split second Gwen got a glimpse of who exactly had a hold of her.

White. So much white. From head to toe, he was dressed in an utterly pristine costume not unlike her own, minus the ballerina skirts. White gloves, white pants, a short cape lined in pale, icy silk. He even had pauldrons decorated in snowy feathers, perfect matches to the ones woven in her hair, and a mask decorated in elegant silver swoops, mimicking her makeup. 

It should’ve been comforting, this orchestrated partnership. Instead, there was something familiarly _ wrong _about it. All that white….and those whispers, spoken in a breathy rasp, as if to disguise their true nature...

Fuck. Gwen tensed up, jerking free. Or she tried to anyway. The grip he had on her wrist was painfully tight, immobile as steel. Not the soft touch David always used, steeped in tenderness and familiar affection. It lacked his warmth too. 

This...wasn’t David. 

Glancing back at her, the figure smiled. _ “Something wrong? You look scared.” _ A shaft of light cascaded across his face, making the silver whorls of his mask sparkle. But that’s not what Gwen fixated upon. _ Nooo _. Because behind that mask burned two pale blue eyes, the only drop of color on him. Such an eerie shade of blue, like glacial ice jutting across a cloudless sky. 

She only knew one person who had eyes like that. 

“......Daniel.” 

_ “In the flesh. Ah, I suppose I don’t need to disguise myself anymore, now do I?” _The whisper faded out of his voice like it was never even there, leaving Daniel’s deceptively cheerful tenor in its place. “Hello Gwen! I suppose this must be a bit of a shock. The last time you saw me, I was on my way to Antarctica!!” 

Gwen bit her tongue hard enough to taste blood. Dealing with a psychotic cultist was not how she’d planned on spending her night!! “You should’ve stayed there. In case you didn’t get the memo, you’re not welcome here Daniel!” 

“Now now, that’s not a very nice thing to say! But I’ll forgive you, just this once.” Daniel resumed his task of leading her through the shadows, then dragged her down a smaller corridor where an open doorway waited, flickers of warm candlelight glowing within. Gwen dug her heels in and tried to fight back, but Daniel simply yanked on her wrist until she had to hold back a scream of pain. “Please don’t fight me Gwen. I’d much rather not hurt you.”

“You already are,” Gwen snapped. It felt like he was going to tear her arm out of her socket! “Let me go!!” 

Daniel clucked his tongue, unrelentingly strong as he pulled her through the doorway. With a harsh snap of his arm Gwen went tumbling forward onto her knees, the chilly tile tearing at her thin tights. Her phone clattered to the floor beside her, and was quickly scooped up by Daniel, who beamed at her and tucked it into his pocket. “Finders keepers! Ah, are you ok Gwen? I’m so sorry. Sometimes I forget my own strength.”

Uhuh. Like she believed that. “You’re so full of it. You’re not sorry.” Ignoring the stinging pain that lanced up her thighs, Gwen scrambled to her feet and backed away from the looming cultist. Bad idea. That put her further into the room, and too late she realized Daniel was standing between her and the door, which he shut with a menacing, quiet _ click. _

Shit. 

“There! Now we’ll have some privacy. You’re a very hard person to get alone, did you know that? You can’t imagine all the work I put into making this moment happen!” Daniel smiled, bouncing jubilantly on the balls of his feet. “I thought you’d question the new number story, but you never did! Lucky me, right? I guess it was just believable enough to work! David must go through phones like candy, hm? He should do a better job of looking after his things.”

From the crude way his gaze swept over her, Gwen had a sickening suspicion that they weren’t just talking about cell phones. “I’m guessing _ you _sent me the text then.” Awesome. Which meant David probably wasn’t even here. Double awesome. Gwen nervously scanned the room, but it was completely void of anything she could use as a weapon. Unless she wanted to try torching Daniel to death. “What’s with all the candles? Are we conjuring spirits or something?”

“Or something,” Daniel hummed, smiling even brighter. “I wouldn’t worry your pretty little head about it though. When the time comes, you won’t even notice them!”

Fuck. Ominous much? “You say that like it’s a threat.” Gwen forced herself not to cower beneath that bone chilling stare, despite every fiber of her being screaming to run, attack. Do something! “If you’re smart, you’ll let me walk out of here right now. We can pretend this never happened.”

“Gwen, I’m not an idiot. If I let you leave, you’ll run straight to the police! I’ll never see the light of day again.” Daniel shook his head and sighed. “Xemug would be so disappointed. I can’t allow that! He’s quite magnanimous, when it pleases him, but he doesn’t accept failure! Especially not from his most loyal follower.”

“Fuck you. If you’re so loyal, go back to Antarctica and leave me the hell alone!” Gwen scowled. “Why are you even here? Didn’t your crazy god command to build him a temple or something??”

“Oh yes! I built several, in fact! Nothing was good enough for my great lord, and I did so want to please him Gwen.” With the casual grace of a predator on the hunt, Daniel stalked towards her, one agonizingly slow step at a time. “Though between you and me, there were several times when I began to question whether or not Xemug sent me to that barren wasteland as a form of exile, not the reward he claimed it to be. Why else would he condemn me to such an isolated place? It’s so _ lonely _in Antarctica, Gwen! I had no one to talk to, no one to share my experiences with. It was the first time I ever truly felt….alone.”

“Oh boo-hoo! How terrible for you,” Gwen snapped, backing into the wall. Even with all the candles burning around her, it felt like ice against her skin. “Newsflash Daniel, feeling lonely doesn’t make you special. We all go through times where we’re alone! It’s part of being human. Not that you’d understand what that’s like.” 

“But I do! I do understand Gwen! I’m _ human. _ Just like you!” With a feverish glee Daniel rushed forward and grabbed her upper arms, pinning her in place. “Don’t you see? For all the gifts and privileges Xemug has granted me, I’m still a mortal man! I have wants, needs. _ Desires. _ And that’s why he sent me away! Not just to build his temples, or to punish. He wanted me to realize that I’ve been denying myself the most simple of mortal pleasures, when in actuality I’ve never _ needed _to. I can embrace Xemug and his teachings, AND have my vices. I don’t have to be alone Gwen!”

Daniel’s fingertips were eating into her skin hard enough to bruise. It hurt, and Gwen flinched, only able to watch him press in close as something feeling uncomfortably like nausea began to swirl inside her gut. “Good for you. You had an epiphany. What’s that got to do with me?” 

“_Everything. _It has everything to do with you,” Daniel chirped. He reached up and cupped her face, blunted nails scratching ever so lightly across her jawline. “After all, I can’t think of another person on this entire corrupted planet who can understand my loneliness better than you!”

“.....What?” Anxiety cut through her like a rusty blade. Gwen cringed away, still feeling Daniel’s touch, the chill of his calloused fingers against her flesh. “What the hell are you talking about??”

“Oh Gwen. Don’t play coy! You and I both know you’ve experienced firsthand what it’s like to feel abandoned. _ Forgotten. _ I mean, when was the last time you heard from David? The _ real _David? Hmm? Have you spent any time together since your camp closed for the summer?” 

Gwen opened her mouth to spit a retort, and then it immediately died on her lips. No. No, they hadn’t. The texts were actually the first time they’d spoken in weeks. _ Months. _But those were all Daniel....so no dice there. David had effectively dropped off the face of the earth. Leaving her, well….alone. 

Not that she would never admit it, but a tiny, desperate part of herself felt pretty wrecked by what basically qualified as friendship abandonment. What happened to being CBFL’s? Was she so easily forgotten? 

Maybe...maybe he was glad to be rid of her. Maybe the lack of texts or calls was a sign...

As if sensing her despair, Daniel shook his head and heaved a dramatic sigh. “Your face says it all. He really hasn’t called, has he? Not even once? Poor Gwen! How tragic for you.”

Heat bloomed across her face. Psychotic, manipulative bastard. Gwen growled and forced her bleeding heart to take a backseat, before Daniel could tear into it like a bloodthirsty wolf. “He’s probably busy with work, or..or something!! People who aren’t deranged, freeloading serial killers have responsibilities,” she snapped, a little too defensively. Her excuses sounded just like that; _ excuses. _

“Is that so?” With a smile that teetered on the razor’s edge of being cruel, chock full of all too white teeth and glistening pink gums, Daniel tugged her away from the wall and pressed their bodies flush together. A deceptively strong hand on her waist pinned Gwen in place, Daniel’s warm breath fanning across her skin as he bent in close and whispered into her ear. “Don’t kid yourself Gwen. How hard is it to make one silly little phone call? If David wanted to contact you, he would. But he hasn’t_. You’re alone.” _

“S-shut up. I’m not! You don’t know a thing about me Daniel. Not one damn thing!” Gwen shoved her palms against Daniel’s chest and stomped her right heel down on his foot. Ballet shoes didn’t make for the most formidable weapons, but she put enough force behind it to make it _ hurt. _And she was successful. Daniel lurched back with a cry, giving Gwen a sliver of a chance to dart past him towards the door. She could make it downstairs if she was quick enough! She’d call the police, and-

“I don’t think so. You’re not running away from this!” A sharp tug to her skirts yanked Gwen backwards, making her stumble. Daniel was there to catch her though. Before her body had a chance to hit the floor she was enveloped in his arms and spun around so her spine was pressed against his chest, one pale hand wrapped snugly around her throat. But not hard enough to choke. 

It was a warning.

A very, _ very _ effective one. 

“You didn’t seriously think that would work, did you?” Daniel’s thumb pressed down on her pulse, and Gwen’s heart skipped a beat. “Silly Gwen. As if I’d let you get away that easily! We’re not done with our conversation yet.”

“Yeah? Well, maybe if you spent less time threatening me, I’d actually want to stick around, you fucking psychopath!!” 

Daniel huffed, but there was laughter threaded through his voice. No, not laughter. _ Joy. _He was enjoying this. “You can call me all the names you want! I’m not offended. You may look like a swan, but you’re more like a feral kitten. All of this hissing and fighting, it’s a ruse! A facade. You think it’ll hide how scared you are.”

Gwen stiffened, braving her way through the waves of terror crashing down on her. “I’m not scared of you.” 

“Did I say you were? I said you were _ scared. _ Of what…well, that _ is _ the question!” Daniel drifted off, rhythmically _ tap-tap-tapping _ his fingertips across her rib cage. “Let’s think. What could _ you _possibly be afraid of? Wasted potential? Rejection? Both options, I suppose, but I doubt either one would put a chill up your spine!” Daniel chuckled, nuzzling the back of her neck. “How about….abandonment? Does the thought of being alone scare you, Gwen?”

Oh god. Nausea knotted her stomach, the taste of acid coating the back of her throat. “Fuck you…” Gwen flushed, tears stinging the corner of her eyes. “Why are you doing this Daniel? Is it some kind of sick game?”

“Not at all! I simply want to understand you. We have so much in common, after all. Tenacity! Intelligence. A stupendous sense of commitment.” Daniel’s lips tickled the few stray hairs wisping across her nape. Gwen shivered, biting back a weak noise. “Plus, we both share the same fear! Loneliness is…..horrendous. It’s like having a gaping hole inside your chest, and it devours all the warmth inside you, until all you’re left with is endless….nothing.” Daniel shuddered. “It’s such an awful feeling Gwen. I wouldn’t wish it upon my worst enemy.”

“Like hell you wouldn’t. You hate David. And Max! You’d love to see them suffer!!” Gwen tried to jab him with her elbow, kick his knee, anything, but she was trapped. A prisoner to whatever Daniel decided to do with her. 

It was a sickening thought. 

“Hate is such a strong word. But accurate!” Daniel chuckled. “Even so, I can’t say they deserve to be alone. Maybe just Max.”

Frustration built up inside her. They kept going in circles, never closing in on the end of this stupid ass conversation. Why orchestrate this whole charade if all Daniel wanted to do was get her alone and, what, talk her ear off? “Tell me what you want,” Gwen craned her head back to sneer at the platinum blond, painfully aware of the wobble in her voice. She was so close to breaking down. “What’s the point of all this Daniel? Are you trying to torture me? Get inside my head?”

“Of course not!” Daniel had the nerve to sound offended. “I’d never want to torture you Gwen! Why would you even say such a thing?”

“Are you kidding me? Maybe because that’s what you’ve been doing this whole _ FUCKING TIME!!!” _ The dam burst, twin trails of tears carving lines down her face. Gwen struggled to speak through all the choked sobs suddenly pouring out of her mouth, but she couldn’t stop. There was no one here to _ help _her stop. David had always been so good at calming her down when she had an attack, but he’d gone and vanished out of her life, abandoning her to this. To Daniel. 

“.....I don’t—understand…” 

“Hm?” Daniel carefully spun her around, never once breaking physical contact. He assessed her slowly, _ intimately_, with a soft tenderness glowing in his glacial eyes that was eerily out of place. “Come again Gwen? I didn’t quite hear you.”

“I said, I don’t understand. _ Why are you doing this_,” Gwen cried out, wilting beneath that stare. The hole in her chest burned, as if lightning had passed through it and singed her rough edges. “If not torture, then what?! Revenge? Poetic justice? Some sort of weird, culty thought experiment??” Gwen pounded on his chest, curling her fingers into the luxurious fabric of Daniel’s costume. “Which is it, you monster?! Tell me! Tell me the truth!!”

Her lungs burned, crying out for air. Fuck. _ Fuck. _She was having a full blown panic attack. Realization kicked in, but it was too late. Gwen gasped for air, clawing at Daniel’s shoulder as black spots speckled her vision. She couldn’t breathe. Every inch of her was strung out to the limit, her body screaming for mercy, release. Anything. 

“Gwen? Hey now, shh. _ Shhhhh.” _ Daniel’s voice broke the hazy fog superimposed over her brain. Gwen felt herself being lowered gently to the floor, the tile jarringly cold against her knees. Something thin and rectangular was pressed into her hands, Daniel’s pale fingers forcing hers to close around it and grip tight. “Listen to me Gwen. This may be hard for you to believe, but I’m not here for revenge. I don’t want to _ hurt you.” _

“B-bullshit. You’re lying!”

“I’m not. Think. Why would I go through all this trouble if hurting you was my only goal?” Daniel lifted her hands. She was holding a flask, the cap of which he unscrewed for her. “Drink. It’ll help you calm down. I promise, it’s not poisoned. In fact, it’s not even koolaid! Just good, old fashioned lemonade.”

Like she could trust anything he said. Still, she took a shaky sip anyway, letting the cloying, lemony sweetness trickle across her tongue. It tasted fine. Safe, even. But Gwen still shuddered like a leaf, her pupils blown wide as Daniel stroked the underside of her wrist and slowly, methodically, started counting his breaths. “One, two, three….c’mon Gwen. Count with me…” 

Damn him to hell. She wished he’d slipped off an iceberg and drowned. Still, Gwen did what he told her, focusing on his hypnotically smooth voice until her heart stopped pounding like a drum, and her breathing mellowed out. “Fuck...y-you,” she hissed, far more wispily than she would’ve liked. Anxiety attacks always made her feel weak afterwards. “Your-_fault.” _

“I’m sorry. But do you feel better now? Calmer?” Daniel tipped the flask back towards her lips, encouraging her to take another small swig. “You should’ve let me explain myself first! I told you, harming you is the last thing on my mind. I can’t imagine why you’d think otherwise. You’re not the one who ruined all my plans. Short of taking a snappy tone, you’ve never done _ anything _remotely rude or condescending to me at all!” 

Well, he wasn’t wrong. They honestly hadn’t interacted much at all, before today. “You’re not welcome,” Gwen growled, smacking the flask away. It clattered to the floor, lemonade pouring out sluggishly. 

In the candlelight, it looked oddly..._ murky. _

“Now Gwen, why did you do that? That’s incredibly wasteful! I went through a lot of trouble to make that fresh, just for you.” Daniel shook his head, amusement making his lips quirk up at the corners. “Oh well. No harm done, I suppose! You already had a taste. We’ll have to hope that’s enough!” 

Enough. Enough for what?? 

“What...did you do?” Gwen pushed herself away from the grinning cultist, despising the way he watched her oh so fondly, as if her attempts were nothing short of comical. “Is it poisoned? What the hell?! You said you didn’t want to hurt me!!”

“And I don’t! I promise, nothing I’ve done tonight will harm you in any way!” Daniel grabbed her ankle and yanked her back towards him. “All I want from you is a chance. We could be friends, if you let us! And why shouldn’t we be? We shouldn’t have to feel lonely, Gwen.” Daniel crouched over her, something feral and bright in his aquamarine eyes. “Let me be here for you. This pain you’re feeling? The misery? I can make it all go away. You’ll never have to feel alone again....”

“You’re lying! You..”

Gwen’s vision flickered, then began to go blurry around the edges. Her body burned hot, her limbs too heavy to move. Something—something in the lemonade. She should’ve realized! 

“What did you give me…” Gwen sluggishly climbed to her feet, taking a few shaky steps as she battled the cloying haze of exhaustion that threatened to pull her under. If she let it, she’d drown. There wouldn’t be any hope for her then. “Fuck, you—you drugged me! Sonofabitch...”

Daniel stalked after her with a grin, though he took his sweet time. He wasn’t worried about her getting away. “It won’t cause any permanent damage. It’s only something to help you feel more….malleable.”

In other words, he’d pumped her full of date rape drugs. Gwen moaned, stumbling towards the door. “You sick fuck. Screw being your friend. I’d rather be alone!” 

“Aww, don’t say that Gwen! You’ll hurt my feelings.”

“You don’t have feelings! You’re a monster!” Sticky with sweat, her fingertips slipped across the doorknob. And the nausea she’d felt earlier had returned full force. Gwen stamped it down and wrenched the door open, a wash of cool air making her shiver as she all but threw herself out of the room and stumbled drunkenly down the hall. 

All she had to do was get back to the party. If she could do that, she’d make it out of here! But Daniel was right behind her, dogging her footsteps like a malevolent shadow. He wasn’t going to let her leave. What would he do, if she got dragged back into that room? 

Something told her she didn’t want to find out.

“_Gweeeen _ ….where are you going Gwen? There’s nowhere to run! You’ll never make it downstairs without my help. A gentle breeze could knock you over right now!” Taunting her, Daniel’s nails ghosted down the length of her spine. He was so _ close. _If he wanted to, he could grab her at any time. 

Gwen panicked, blindly smacking at the cultist’s arm as she backed away. “Leave me alone! Don’t you get it, you fucking lunatic? I hate your guts!! You’re insane!” 

“No, I’m _ enlightened. _And you will be too, after we complete the ceremony!” 

Ceremony?? Shit. He wanted to convert her!! “Stay away from me! I’m warning you, stay! AWAY!!” 

“Or what? You’ll scream at me some more?” Daniel reached out, his pale face moon white in the shadows. “Don’t be afraid. All of this pain will be a distant thing of the past once you let Xemug into your heart! He’ll carve away your impurities and make you anew!! You’ll feel so much better Gwen. _ Don’t you want to feel better??” _

“No!! Leave me alone!” 

Daniel laughed, a maniacal, low pitched giggle. “Not a chance. We loners have to stick together, after all!” His fist closed around the sleeve of her costume, ready to drag her back into the belly of the beast. “Give me a chance to prove myself Gwen! You won’t regret it, _ I promise….” _

“Fuck you!!!” Gwen flailed and lashed out, trying to shove him off her. But then her foot slipped, and suddenly there was nothing except air beneath her heel. 

Oh fuck, _ the stairs!! _She was at the stairs! 

The realization struck her and Daniel at the same time. Gwen saw him fumble, grappling hopelessly for anything to catch himself. There was nothing. With surprised shouts the two of them went tumbling down,_ down, __DOWN, _nothing but a tangle of limbs and swan feathers. 

_ Thump. _

_ WHAM! _

Gwen shrieked and tried to protect herself, curling her arms around her battered body. The drugs Daniel had given her did nothing to muffle the pain. She felt her temple bash against the edge of a stair, while another clipped her cheekbone, blood splattering the steps in gory petals. And then-

_ THUD!! _

She hit the floor.

Everything went quiet. Deathly quiet. For a hot second, Gwen was pretty certain she fainted. No, she _ definitely _fainted. All she saw was black, unending darkness, until she finally managed to peel her eyes open. She’d landed half twisted onto her side, her head pillowed by her upper arm. Her entire body ached, and the tang of fresh blood was all over her mouth. But she was alive. Fuck, she was ALIVE!!

And as for Daniel—

Gwen forced herself to look around, ignoring the blistering pain inside her skull. Something was crumpled beside her, just to her right. A solid mass of snow white silk. Daniel. She must’ve rolled over him when they landed!

Despite every inch of her screaming in protest, Gwen sat up. Daniel wasn’t moving. To be honest, she couldn’t even tell if he was _ breathing. _Not that it mattered. If he was alive, then she was still in danger. Which meant she needed to MOVE. 

One step at a time. Her arms shrieked, bruised muscles demanding mercy, but she managed to cart her exhausted body across the floor. Gwen bit her tongue and smothered the unwilling whimpers that sprung forth. If it got her away from the unconscious (dead?) cult leader, then it was all worth it. 

There was a blotch on the tile just ahead. Small, rectangular—her phone! It must’ve fallen out of Daniel’s pocket when they fell! Gwen crawled her way over to it snatched it up, nervously checking the screen. No cracks, lucky her, and it lit up when she pressed the home button. Thank fucking god. But the real surprise was the slew of texts waiting for her, all from a number she didn’t recognize. 

Scanning through them quickly, Gwen nearly started to bawl. 

_ Hey CBFL!! Meant to text sooner, but I lost my phone! Had to save up for a new one! I’m so sorry! Happy Halloween? :D _

_ I’m at the courthouse! Someone told me they saw you here! If I’d known you were coming, we could’ve worn matching costumes! :O _

_ Where are you? You’re dressed like a swan, right? _

_ Gwen? You’re not mad, are you? I really am sorry…. _

_ Did you know there’s someone here dressed like you? Not exactly, but close! He even has the feathers! Are you together? Did you get a new boyfriend after camp? :D _

_ I heard that the guy dressed all in white didn’t come to the party with you! And apparently he was….watching you? That’s what this nice couple told me. Weird, right? I think they were drunk though. It’s probably nothing... _

_ Gwen??? Someone said that feather man was tall and blond! And he has blue eyes! I know it sounds crazy, but I think….it could be Daniel!! If you’re not with someone, text me! _

_ Are you ok? Please text me back! _

_ Where did you go??? No one’s seen you in ages! I’m worried….. _

_ I’m coming to look for you! Please be ok!!! _

They cut off after that. A strangled sound tore from Gwen’s lips, joy and terror battling for dominance inside her. If David was here, then he was in as much danger as she was! She had to warn him. But—holy fuck, David was _ here. _And he was worried about her! He cared!! 

A fresh round of tears sprung up, rivulets of pearly eyeshadow and dull red smearing her cheeks. That meant Daniel was WRONG!! David never forgot about her! He just lost his stupid phone, like he always did!! He never meant to ignore her, _ abandon her!! _Her paranoia had gone and blown everything out of proportion, making her assume the worst. And then along came Daniel, torch at the ready to burn away whatever fragile sensibilities she’d had left. He’d known precisely which strings to pull, the best ways to make her bleed. Fucking maniac….

Who was only a few feet away. Listless and silent, not that it made her feel any better. If he wasn’t dead, he could wake up. He’d come after her. Drugged up like she was, there was no way Gwen would be able to fight him off. She was helpless. 

No, wait! David! Her phone! She could text him back!! Gwen stabbed at the screen, but she couldn’t make out what was on it anymore. Whatever drugs Daniel had forced upon her were kicking in, adrenaline making them take root a lot faster than normal. 

A master of cruel and unusual timing, her body was finally succumbing to unconsciousness.

“Noooo..._ nonononoNoNO. _C’mon you wimp, just a little bit longer! You can do this!! You’ve gotta stay awake!!” Gwen struggled to drag herself further down the hall, as far away from the cultist as she could manage, but her arms burned with the effort. She’d nearly made it to the end when her wrists finally gave out, and Gwen collapsed to the floor, a boneless heap that could only lay there helplessly as a noise echoed off the walls in a soft hush, caressing her skin like a living nightmare. 

_ Gwen… _

_ Gweeennn……. _

Oh dear god, NO. Gwen buried her face into her arms, muffling a terror filled whine. This was it. She tried to get away, and she failed. Now she was too weak to keep moving. All she had was her name growing louder and louder in her ears. 

No, not louder. _ Closer. _

_ Gwen. _

_ Gwen! _

_ “GWEN!! _There you are!!!! I’ve been looking everywhere for you!!”

Wait….what? That wasn’t Daniel. Gwen’s head snapped up so fast she felt her neck crack. Instead of the blur of white she’d been expecting, someone completely different stood before her. Someone dressed in a colorful costume, with a mop of dark red hair fluffed up above his brow. 

“D-David….?” Gwen whimpered with pure relief. “Is that….really you?” It couldn’t be. Her luck wasn’t nowhere near that good. 

Except it….was. 

“Yes!! It’s me! Gwen, what happened to you? I kept texting, but you never replied! Everyone at the party said you vanished, and then there was the guy with the feathers—” David dropped to his knees in front of her and carefully, so very carefully, cupped her face in his hands. “Talk to me Gwen. _ Please. _ Are you ok??_” _

“…..you’re actually here. I’m not hallucinating.”

“Why would you be??” David sucked in a harsh breath. “Oh my gosh. Gwen, you’re bleeding! Who did this? Was it……” emerald eyes shot to a spot above her head, immediately glazing over with fear. “Is that...Daniel?! He’s really here!!? He did this to you, didn’t he?!”

“Sorta.” Fuck. Thinking straight hurt more than it should. Gwen struggled to put the words together, hissing them through her teeth. “...Fell down the stairs. Was trying to get away….” 

“Oh Gwen! You poor thing!” David moaned, scoping out her legs and arms with the most delicate touch imaginable. “Does anything feel broken? Can you move?”

She wasn’t sure. “I think—nothing’s broken. Hit my head though. Ngh…” Gwen chin drooped, all of her thoughts murkily blending together in a messy web. “Can’t move. Daniel, he—drugs. Attacked me….wanted to get me alone. David, he said things. Made me think you didn’t...that you abandoned-” 

David shushed her, gathering her up as if she weighed no more than a bag of leaves. “Daniel’s a liar. Whatever he said, it doesn’t matter! So don’t..don’t talk, ok? Oh god, your poor face...you have to be in so much pain! But it’s all gonna be ok now. Alright? I’m here! I’m gonna take care of you Gwen. We’ll call an ambulance, and the cops. They’ll take Daniel away, lock him up. He won’t be able to hurt you anymore.”

That sounded nice. Almost too good to be true. “I’m sorry David…...I tried. I tried to ignore him. But Daniel kept saying I was alone. There was nowhere to go! If we didn’t fall down the stairs...” 

“Why are you apologizing? None of this is your fault Gwen!! You didn’t do anything wrong!” David hugged her close and took off down the hall as fast as his long legs could carry him. There was no way for her to be sure, not in the low light and with her vision fucked three ways sideways, but Gwen swore he was crying. “It’ll be ok Gwen. I swear, everything will be ok now.”

“Yeah…” Gwen let her head fall against David’s chest, the drugs ripping away the last of her cognitive functions. Or was it a potential concussion? Nothing to do about it either way. At least she was safe now. David would protect her. David….

He never abandoned her. He never intentionally ignored her. Gwen clung to David’s promises with all the desperation of a drowning woman. As she curled into the protective nest of her friend’s arms, she dared to peek over his shoulder. The last thing she saw before unconsciousness swept her under were a few snowy feathers, floating about on some imaginary breeze. Daniel’s memento mori. 

Was he still there? Or had he slipped away like a ghost, leaving only his memories and cruel words behind? Gwen carried the weight of those thoughts into sleep, a silent mantra screaming its prayers into the void. 

Please be dead. He couldn’t hurt her if he was dead. So please, _ please. _

_ Let him be dead. _   
  
  



End file.
